NCJ Number
164623
Journal
Journal of Gang Research Volume: 4 Issue: 1 Dated: (Fall 1996) Pages: 9-18
Date Published
1996
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This study focuses on the factors that differentiate female gang members from non-gang members in Chicago.
Abstract
The data used in this study were from a survey conducted by the Research Institute of Illinois TASC between January and March 1995. The survey sample was drawn randomly from female pretrial offenders who were detained at three separate facilities in Chicago. A total of 307 subjects were interviewed. They were asked a variety of gang-related questions concerning their background characteristics, childhood abuse history, family functioning, gang-risk environment, drug use, criminal history, and current charge. Findings show that 97 subjects (30 percent of the sample) were ever gang members. Compared to female non-gang members, female gang members were younger, less educated, less likely to be married, and more likely to be unemployed. Ethnic background was similar for both groups, with a majority being African-American; however, the proportion of individuals with a Hispanic background was higher among gang members. Females in both groups were mostly from disadvantaged social groups. Gang members were disproportionately from dysfunctional families, but most importantly, they were exposed to the lure of their close friends being gang members; female friends in gangs is the strongest predicting variable, followed by boyfriends and brother/sister in gangs. 3 tables and 18 references